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Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet!

Posted by MarkH on 2008/9/30 11:15:04 (1531) reads

From the Sept '08 issue of Ward's Auto World:

The Jeep JT, a pickup based on the Jeep Wrangler Unlimited SUV, and the Dodge Demon roadster both bowed in early 2007, just as Chrysler found itself faced with an ownership change that severed its access to the considerable investment and intellectual capital of what is now Daimler AG.
"They're concepts, but we're shopping them around looking for, maybe, partnerships," Gilles says.

Of the two, the JT presents "an easier proposition," he says, adding it has captured the imaginations of Chrysler personnel.

We last covered the JT way back in December of 2007...

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Renegade	Posted: 2008/10/10 21:59 Updated: 2008/10/10 21:59
Quite a regular Joined: 2005/8/11 From: Atlanta, GA Posts: 61	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! Well, count me in that Gladiator crowd. Of course, I'm actually in favor of them building a full-size Gladiator as well as a mid/compact JT. I do think it's stupid that they haven't built the JT yet. As mentioned, this should be yet another option available. It could be done very cheaply. They should have offered this long ago...

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myhotwheels22981	Posted: 2008/10/3 13:22 Updated: 2008/10/3 13:22
Home away from home Joined: 2002/3/21 From: Posts: 183	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! Taking a good look at the JT, it appears that it is stock length, but with an extended wheelbase by moving the rear wheels back. Thats why there is a little more space between the door and the rear wheelwell I like the looks of the JT as a pickup truck, but let's face it, it will have to have the option of carrying 4 or 5 passengers, thats why I posted before that the JT should be an option, rather than an entirely separate truck. What that equates to is a Scrambler, in terms of utility. But unlike a Scrambler, the wheelbase is maxed out, more like a CJ-6 and, J-8. Either way, I want one if it can carry 5 passengers, even with 2 doors. If JEEP flexes their Wrangler Platform, there will be... JK 2 Door JK Unlimited 2 Door (Scrambler) JK Unlimited 4 Door JT Pickup J-8 Troop Carrier (7 passenger Family Truckster)

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MarkH	Posted: 2008/10/3 9:26 Updated: 2008/10/3 9:26
Home away from home Joined: 2005/7/20 From: The Great White North Posts: 406	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! Hmmmm, I'm betwixt & between whether they should go with a 2 or 4 seater... Inotherwords, a J8(or JT)-style Scrambler, or an H3T-style 4-seater? Now that JK sales have started to slump, there's certainly room on the production line to do a variant and boost sales. So let's go, Gilles! Your market awaits!

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GoNsnow	Posted: 2008/10/2 18:20 Updated: 2008/10/2 18:20
Not too shy to talk Joined: 2005/12/15 From: NE Qe USA Posts: 27	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! With an ever so slight lengthening of the bed, and engineering a tailgate that both swings or drops, we can have a real hit on our hands!

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myhotwheels22981	Posted: 2008/10/2 10:43 Updated: 2008/10/2 10:43
Home away from home Joined: 2002/3/21 From: Posts: 183	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! I agree, yet disagree with Jeepin... I agree that the overall dimensions of the JT is on-par with most small and even some mid-size pickups. However, my point was that the pickup bed/box is too small to even haul a sheet of plywood, (something the Dakota, Frontier, and Tacoma can do) and since the tailgate swings, and does not drop, a JT owner can't even haul some 2x4's gracefully. Therefore, it would make more sense to advertise it as a "cargo box". I've also considered that the JT isn't being built so readily, because there is a "Gladiator" crowd out there that want's a mid to full size 5 seat, 6 foot bed Jeep pickup. Remember that concept was built on the Dakota frame and featured too many doo-dads...Most people on this site agree on the JT's simplicity of pickup with the option of adding a fullsize soft-top. I'm simply looking at the marketing aspect of the JT, the fact that everyone agrees on is that WE WANT ONE from JEEP, and with slumping sales, despite Jeeps overall appeal, a new dimension with minimal cost is the way to go.

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Jeepin	Posted: 2008/10/2 15:51 Updated: 2008/10/2 15:51
Home away from home Joined: 2005/11/28 From: TX Posts: 187	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! I agree with you that it would need to be marketed more as a cargo box than a truck bed, due to the length and swing-out tailgate. Anything short of a full-size truck has to carry a sheet of plywood above the wheel wells though doesn't it? Or is the Tacoma and company big enough now to have a full 4' btwn the wheel wells? Either way the non-full-width tailgate on the JT is the real limiting factor on the width, and then of course there's the length issue... I think a Gladiator type JK truck would sell better, but the JT would be considerably cheaper and easier to put into production...

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77chief	Posted: 2008/10/1 17:14 Updated: 2008/10/1 17:14
Just popping in Joined: 2007/8/21 From: Posts: 14	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! for some reason the headhonchos in chrysler have always thought for some dumb reason that dodge trucks where better than jeep trucks, they obviously have never stepped inside an amc 401 equipped J10. i wish jeep was its own company, that way they could build good jeeps again. chrysler needs to man up and actually build this truck, NOW.

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01TJ	Posted: 2008/10/1 15:38 Updated: 2008/10/1 15:38
Just can't stay away Joined: 2006/8/25 From: Posts: 71	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! With the demand for gas hungry full size trucks drying up the demand for smaller, more fuel efficient trucks should be going up. The big three seem to have their head in their a$$ when it comes to knowing what buyers want so you might as well forget about a factory produced Wrangler truck. They killed the MJ Commanche too soon, they probably would have sold another coupld hundred thousand if they let them live on as long as the XJ.

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jerryjeep	Posted: 2008/10/1 15:08 Updated: 2008/10/1 15:08
Not too shy to talk Joined: 2006/8/28 From: Southeast, Michigan Posts: 32	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! The Jeep guys know they can sell some JT pickups, and the Decision Makers over there (whoever that might be) need to get off dead center and quit studying the idea and start building them. The engineering is nearly done and there are no mysteries to be solved. Sign me up for one in the first month of production. I am currently thinking about restoring my Scrambler and the availability of a JT pickup would solve that right away. For anyone who can't wait, check out RUBI-TRUX which are a very reasonable alternative for the TJ truck in the Scrambler style.

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myhotwheels22981	Posted: 2008/10/1 8:50 Updated: 2008/10/1 9:10
Home away from home Joined: 2002/3/21 From: Posts: 183	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! The JT is a No-Brainer... Sites like Burnsville OffRoad are showing home-made JK Scramblers that were 4-doors with sheetmetal covering what was the rear doors. The problem in making the case for the JT is that Dodge is building the TITAN for Nissan off of the RAM frame, Nissan will be building the DAKOTA for Dodge off of the FRONTIER frame. So, then full size and mid-size pickups are covered, nobody is really marketing a mini-pickup in America, even the S-10 replacement, COLORADO/CANYON are midsize, so marketing the JT as a mini-pickup wont fly in our current market. To make the case for the JT, it needs to first be sold as a cargo/utility box, with things like mountain bikes, ATV's, tools, and camping gear shown in the bed...Second, it needs to be seamless and at a minimal cost to JEEP...More of an option than an entirely differnt truck. Jeep simply has to contract a specialty company like AEV, (or do it themselves), and, pull completed frames off the assembly line, and put on the modified coach. Really, with the Jeep Flexible Assembly line, I don't understand why the JT hasn't happened yet, after all, the JT was built from stock JK parts anyway, why can't Jeep just inject JT Sheetmetal into the assembly line...It;s still a JK, just with a different door configuration. The rear doors (one or both) could even be converted into side cargo steps.

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Jeepin	Posted: 2008/10/1 14:48 Updated: 2008/10/1 14:49
Home away from home Joined: 2005/11/28 From: TX Posts: 187	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! Jeep already has a product-ready 2-dr long-tub developed. It's the 2-dr tub for the J8. All they'd have to do to put the JT into production is use the 2-dr Unlimited tub they've already developed and slap a half-cab hard top on it. Even as a 2-dr truck though, the JK would be far from a "mini truck". A TJ-based truck would have, but the JK is quite a bit larger. I really don't know why everyone keeps thinking the JT would be a mini-truck, because it'd be anything but... Let's compare it against the 'midsize' Colorado/Canyon: The JT is taller, wider overall, has a wider track, and a longer wheelbase than a regular cab Canyon/Colorado. It has a shorter overall length though. Dodge's website is gimped right now (no surprise) so I can't look up specs on the Dakota. Compared to a regular cab Tacoma the JT would have a shorter overall length, but have a longer wheelbase. They'd both basically be the same height, the JT would be slightly narrower overall, with a bit narrower track width. If you could somehow market it as a mini truck (or even a compact), that would be a GREAT thing though because that's exactly what's missing from the US automotive market right now, and that's exactly what's in demand. The Ford Ranger, the last true compact truck in the US, has seen a huge resurgence in popularity recently, to the point that Ford canceled their plans to cancel the truck. Oh, compared to the Ranger, the JT is taller, longer wheelbase, wider, wider track, but again has a shorter overall length. I definitely agree with you in that I too don't understand why the JT hasn't happened yet. Seems like a no-brainer to me too since they've basically got everything needed to built it already.

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Ingela	Posted: 2008/9/30 15:49 Updated: 2008/9/30 15:54
Not too shy to talk Joined: 2007/12/12 From: Posts: 30	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! After watching that video from 2007, i think i'll take one just the way it is. Awsome little rig, whats taking so long? I hear Chrysler is making a full size truck for Nissan, well they'll need a small truck too. problem solved. I can see these selling very well here in cali, i can see a diverse bunch of people wanting one for diffrent reasons.

Poster	Thread
01TJ	Posted: 2008/9/30 14:39 Updated: 2008/9/30 14:39
Just can't stay away Joined: 2006/8/25 From: Posts: 71	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! if they would squeeze out a 4 door 4 seater (to fit the kids in the back) with a short truck bed I would be on the waiting list!

Poster	Thread
Ingela	Posted: 2008/9/30 12:42 Updated: 2008/9/30 12:42
Not too shy to talk Joined: 2007/12/12 From: Posts: 30	Re: Jeep JT May Not Be Dead Yet! Cool, Well, if they build it, I will definitely buy one. I can’t think of another car or truck I would rather have, fun but can also be practical. Now, if they make light enough to have one of the new 4 cylinder Phoenix engines instead of a six, that would be even better for me.


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